A Waterloo man and convicted felon who possessed a sawed-off shotgun, shotgun shells, and other ammunition was sentenced today to twenty-five years in federal prison.
Armando Adame, age 27, from Waterloo, Iowa, received the prison term after a May 10, 2018 guilty plea to possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of ammunition by a felon, and possession of an unregistered sawed off shotgun.
In a plea agreement, Adame admitted he possessed a twelve-gauge shotgun on Oct. 25, 2017. This shotgun had an overall length of 16.77 inches and approximate barrel length of 10.45 inches, making it a “sawed-off shotgun" for purposes of the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, requiring that the shotgun be registered. Adame had not registered the shotgun. Adame also admitted that on Nov. 17, 2017, he possessed shotgun shells and.22 caliber ammunition. The firearms and ammunition were discovered when police executed a search warrant on a South Hackett home in Waterloo where Adame was staying. At the time Adame possessed the shotgun and the ammunition, he was a convicted felon having been previously convicted of conspiring to commit a forcible felony and felon in possession of a firearm.
Adame was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by Chief United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand. Adame was sentenced to 300 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made turning the tide of rising violent crime in America a top priority. In October 2017, as part of a series of actions to address this crime trend, Attorney General Sessions announced the reinvigoration of PSN and directed all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to develop a district crime reduction strategy that incorporates the lessons learned since PSN launched in 2001.
Adame is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa C. Williams and investigated by y the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the Grundy County Sherriff’s Office, and the Waterloo Police Department.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 17-CR-2096.
Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
